Thomas S. Flood

Shell swept him off but he returned and kept the signals on!

Thomas S. Flood was an Irish-born Union sailor whose youth did not prevent him from taking on a veteran's responsibility under fire. Born in Ireland in 1840, he served in the U.S. Navy as a Boy aboard USS Pensacola during the campaign against the lower Mississippi defenses.

On 24 and 25 April 1862, Pensacola fought past Forts Jackson and St. Philip in the operation that opened the way to New Orleans. During the action, a shell swept Flood from the bridge and wounded the signal quartermaster. Flood helped the wounded man below, then returned to the exposed bridge and took over the signal duties. His conduct under intense fire brought him the Medal of Honor.

Medal of Honor Citation (condensed): During the attack on Forts Jackson and St. Philip and the capture of New Orleans, Flood returned to the bridge after assisting a wounded signal quartermaster below and carried out the man's duties with remarkable coolness, precision and fidelity.

The surviving Medal of Honor record confirms Flood's 1840 birth in Ireland but does not establish his later life or death with enough certainty to add unsupported details.